[yel.low.ham.mer] n [alter. of earlier yelambre, fr. (assumed) ME yelwambre, fr. ME yelwe yellow + (assumed) ME ambre yellowhammer, fr. OE amore; akin to OHG amaro yellowhammer, amari emmer] (1556) 1: a common Palearctic finch (Emberiza citrinella) having the male largely bright yellow--called also yellow bunting
2: yellow-shafted flicker